Obama Told Olympics Trip Could Have Clinched Chicago's Bid: Jarrett

Chicago Tribune:

In the run-up to the Olympics vote, the White House was getting a clear message from the architects of Chicago's bid: Balloting would be tight, and a personal visit to Copenhagen from President Obama just might lock in a victory.

Read the whole story: Chicago Tribune

Comments

[ElsaIndy]

Obama can only blame himself for being humiliated in Copenhagen. George Will nailed the problem when he said Obama was vain. His speech and MO's speech were all about themselves, not http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/05/9/10/05/AR2009100502703.html?hpid=opinionsbox1
The US Chicago team made fools of themselves with their narcissistic and appallingly bad speeches and their aggressive self-satisfied stance. The committee was only too happy to cut them down. Shame on Obama and the WH for making such fools of themselves.

[ss193]

But Elsa, it was all about the "children" "funds dry up and they can't learn to swim and ride bikes"
Trying to give MO the benefit of the doubt, but who the hell wrote that one? Last time I looked Chicago had a Lake! and a beach..why do they need funds to learn to swim ? And ride bikes! I guess she now expect's Chicago's children to be given a bike riding program. They would be taking their lives in their hands to go bike riding on the South Side! These children will be sitting in their war torn homes watching it on tv. Does she seriously think their families can afford an Olympics ticket?" I guess "children and bikes" are code words for cronies and gentrification, to the elite back home.. who's zooming who ? The true believers, should go read that smug, and clueless speech.

[chedet]

Mr. President, you just got punked!!!!

[wdw505]

funny as hel1 though

[MaximMaximus]

Get real people! Hosting the Olympics in 2016 was a long shot by any stretch of the imagination. The US has hosted 2 summer and 1 winter Olympic Games since 1984 (Los Angeles '84, Atlanta '96, and Winter Olympic Games in Utah). In addition, the Atlanta Olympics had lots of problems! So Chicago had a slim chance; they tried, it didn't work. Get over it.

[chedet]

Try telling that the the right wingers. Doubt it that the facts will ever go through their thick skulls.

[oldguydude]

If it was such a long shot, then why did Jarret sell this to Obama as a done deal if he showed up?

Jarret and her minions continue to over-estimate the effectiveness of Obama. His leadership qualities are severely lacking, yet Jarret and the rest of the drones in the White House don't see or don't want to accept it.

Even Saturday Night Live is starting to get it. Get used to seeing more Obama hatchet pieces on SNL.

[MaximMaximus]

Who says that Ms. Jarret sold this to President Obama? And kind of a language is this? President Obama's help was kindly requested. And since the heads of state of all finalist countries were involved and attending the meeting in Copenhagen, the President tried his best in assisting the US Olympic Committee. Would you chicken out if you knew that it was a long shot? Perhaps you might. But most people have a much stronger sense of duty and give their best even if there is a bit of hope. Nobody was expecting miracles from President Obama. He represented his country like other heads of state. I wonder if the President of Spain is being subjected to the same level of abuse as President Obama.

[duxguts]

It's not fair. Russia had the Olympics and they had their army in Afghanistan.

[chavo]

Jarrett seems like a nice lady. but wasn't she also the "brilliant" advisor who told him to say the Cambridge cop acted "stupidly", which caused that whole blow up?

Perhaps it's time for ol' Valerie to go back to her normal job in Chicago.

[MicheleCA]

excuse me?

[hidenout]

Hard to argue with logic, isn't it.

[rissole]

How many other foreign dignitaries went to Copenhagen with two jumbo jets and gas guzzling armor plates limousines? It would certainly be interesting to see a comparison of their respective carbon footprints.

[Digeeedad]

Remember the BOYCOTT of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow?...­. The United States, West Germany, China, the Phillipines and Canada boycotted these games and sent no athletes, BECAUSE Russia had invaded Afghanistan in 1979!

Certainly there is more to this story, yet, the United States has for the past 8 and 3/4 years been the planets formost agressor nation. People throughout the world, including MANY of our own considered our Iraq invasion illegal. We are known throughout the world as torturers of prisoners of war, and have been responsible ultimately for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians. This can be layed not at Obama's feet, but squarely on the Bush administraton.

We are now increasing agression in Afghanistan. Despite beliefs in our nation that our agression and milutary action is justified, everyone on the planet doesn't share that same view.

So, the question..­. WHY WOULD the IOC vote to have the USA host the 2016 Olympics given the above information, all of which runs COUNTER to Olympic ideals? It's so absurd, but typical that the GOP and the conservative talk show hosts have conveniently "forgotten" the past 8 years, as it relates to the IOC decision. It's much more "fun" I guess to blame the Obama's than to admit that at this point because of those 8 years we don't DESERVE the Olympics!

[S1m0n]

The only "Olympic Ideal" that matters to the IOC is sticking someone else with the tab.

Olympic ideals are what they sell*, not how they act.

*For a couple of million dollars you, too can market your sugary breakfast cereal with the spirit of amateurism.

[Digeeedad]

That may be true, I have no doubt, but all the same.... torture, illegal invasion, etc etc etc should be automatic disqualifiers!

[Nosepuede]

Maybe they got worried when MO talked about sitting on her Dads lap watching Carl Lewis win when she would have been 20 years old. They then needed to decide if she had a wierd relationship with Dad or is merely a liar

[Cloball]

Enjoy Mackenzie's book.

[masha2009]

is she so insulated that she would presume that the world would care for her and her family? i'm sure they're a good family but she is not a world figure yet and she talks as if she is.

[MicheleCA]

flagged as abusive.

[ss193]

Nose, I thought that whole presentation was very strange. The minute you imply "race" you turn much of the world off. The cult of personality is out of control..I­t goes out of whack when the personalities start believing their fan mail.
On the other hand, I married into a family of 4 generations of Ivy League school graduates, the sense of "entitlement" comes with the diploma, eventually the U.of Reality brings most back to Earth, but it can take years. MO may be just waking up to that..It can be a difficult transition­., but let's hope Copenhagen is the beginning of a reality check for both of them.

[ss193]

Carl Lewis's election? He is a fine man, who has paid dearly for the cause of civil rights, but what possible impact did she think that would have on the IOC ? It's fine for people who have overcome perceived hardship to congratulate themselves, but blatant self-aggrandizement is never attractive.

[Dupree]

Tell me loyal patriots..­...if Obama made this country and himself look like a fool....wh­at did the other leaders (minus Rio's) looked like?

He put in a bid for this country. At first all the naysayers were bemoaning that there was a "fix" in the vote. Now that that myth has been dispelled they want to linger on the fact that "made us look like fools." Let me tell YOU what made us look like fools...th­e reveling and "glee" club that cheered when OUR country lost the bid. The ones that is using this incident to take pot shot at this president who was representing U.S. which translates US. He was not the only one rejected ....beside­s the other prominent leaders of other countries.­...WE also lost...as citizens of this nation. It was not a time for celebration of a failure within the scope of our own country...­.it was a time to galvanized behind our President in solidarity for his guts to put at risk...and plunge ahead to promote this country ....withou­t the "fix" intact. Now that takes guts.

[masha2009]

true. it wasnt a time for celebration. it was a loss. but you have to analyze this misstep, for it is a misstep. i did not expect chicago to win but having the president push the bid was a good thing if it were close. but it wasnt and whoever sold that it was close to him should be fired. getting eliminated on the first round was humiliating.

[EWeiss]

I don't feel particularly humiliated or ashamed. I'm seeing a pattern here with the right; shame at being Americans, glee at any perceived loss by America.

[Angie Cordeiro - Huffpost Blogger]

It is simply about losing his footing after being submerged in a lifestyle of way too much power & privilege.

Then there is the age factor, after all he is still a man in his late forties; and as smart & conscientious as his intentions are, well, none in the course of history has been immune to this degree of power & privilege.

Want Change?
Step One:
Make our voices heard with the same dedication as we had to get this man elected.
Step Two:
??? ??? ???

[MicheleCA]

"...losing his footing after being submerged in a lifestyle of way too much power & privilege.­"

You're talking about President Obama? Really?

[EWeiss]

huh?

[PPatt]

Was there really intelligence or just the perspective of someone with a jaundiced perspective regarding American preeminence in every area? I mean was someone thinking how could we not be in a tie-breaker. If that was the case then the Obama adminisitration is not very good at vetting intelligen­ce...and there weren't even any lives at stake in this one.

[masha2009]

exactly. that's why valerie jarrett should fess up. this bad intelligence and reliance of obama on her should be re-thought.

[loki]

unfortunately we are finding out that the President does more of what he is told to do than what he promised us he would do during the campaign.
The wealthy Ivy Greed Capitalist told him to give them more tax payer money like Bush did, And the President did it and still does it.

Someone told him not to follow through on his promise to find the wrong doers in the Bush administration who caused us to invade and go to war with Iraq, and the President did what he was told.

The President is told by Ivy Greed Capitalist not to prosecute or investigate anyone of importance on wall street, or anyone who caused the economic mess we are in, and he did just that.

The Ivy Greed wealthy capitalist of big Phrma, health and insurance industries told the president not to do anything that will not allow them to make obscene profits or take away their power to decide who gets what care and when, and who lives or dies. IT sure looks like the President will do doing as told with our health as well.

[PPatt]

I really don't understand the uproar. People are acting like a jilted 16 year old after asking a girl to the prom. After being turned down they being feeling better after finding a scapegoat.

[billhodges]

The uproar seems to be here more than any where else. Chicago lost so that means Daley, Jarrett and the rest of the crooks in Chicago lost and that is a good thing. No fuss at all.

[escribacat]

Apparently Valeria Jarrett is the new boogeyman to the rightwing. I wonder who decided that -- Limbaugh or Beck?

[ChristineAnn]

I've noticed that too. Suddenly her name is everywhere.

[masha2009]

well she did convince him to go to a first round defeat.

[masha2009]

i've never liked her ever since she conveyed she wanted obama's senate seat. if they werent dealing with a wild card like blago, she would have gotten it.

[wizedollars]

Slumlord, I mean Valerie Jarrett, you are making the President look like even more of a fool. Please be quiet.

[JulieSA]

She's probably responsible for the NEA thing too.

[billhodges]

According the last conference call coordinator Buffy, she worked directly for Valerie. Now Buffy is kicked to the curb.

Wonder who will be next?